Seaside Park settles police excessive force lawsuits for $1.3M

Seven people who claim they were beaten by Seaside Park police have settled their excessive force lawsuits with the borough for a total of $1.3 million, officials said, according to a report in the Asbury Park Press.

The report said the borough's insurance carrier, the Ocean County Joint Insurance Fund, has previously settled five excessive force claims for more than $1.5 million during the past 2 1/2 years. A total of 14 excessive force lawsuits were filed against the police department during the past three years.

"We are very, very happy to put this behind us," Mayor Thomas E. Connors told the newspaper. "We need to get that positive image of Seaside Park back again."